Framework offers refurbished versions of its repairable laptops
The company's unique model could make refurbished devices more intriguing.
Enlarge / Framework is testing and servicing refurbished laptops at a facility in New Jersey and selling refurbished expansion cards to go with them.
Framework, makers of the modular, repairable Framework laptop, has started offering a refurbished version, along with packs of its signature USB-C expansion cards. Lots of hardware makers offer refurbished goods, but Framework's unique position in the laptop market makes this announcement a bit different.
Framework's blog post announcing the new market notes the company's commitment to "remaking consumer electronics to respect people and the planet," and that the company's work to offer previously purchased devices is part of that. Buying refurbished means the laptop (and the planet) sees more use for its already-manufactured parts. And, of course, there's a discount: Refurbished 11th-generation DIY Edition laptops start at $600 in Framework's refurbished marketplace, while a new 11th-generation model is at least $680.
Most of the refurbished models come from returns within the laptops' 30-day guarantee, Framework writes in its post. The laptops go through testing and cleaning in a New Jersey service center, then have parts replaced as needed. Framework notes it can do this work in Europe or Australia, too, but—in a subtle bit of QA marketing—claims it has "received so few returns" that it can't build that inventory.